The Cloud Industry Forum (CIF) has responded to the amber/red status given to G-Cloud by the Major Projects Authority by stating the issues stem from a lack of transparency.
Alex Hilton, CIF’s CEO believes that G-Cloud is failing make it easier for public sector organisations to procure cloud services, “Our latest research on the UK market indicates that cloud adoption rates in the public sector match those in the private sector, both standing at 69 percent, but this enthusiasm does not seem to have spread to local government, which simply hasn’t taken to G-Cloud as was predicted.
“From its inception, G-Cloud held a great deal of promise and we fundamentally support a consistent approach to cloud procurement by government. The government’s stated aspiration is for 25 percent of central procurement to be through SMEs, but this does not seem to be following through to local authorities.”
Hilton believes that the CIF’s Code of Practice certification model for cloud procurement services needs to be shared widely by providers with local authorities to further assure their cloud credentials.
“Whilst the European Commission is driving its Digital Agenda for Europe the UK government doesn’t itself subscribe today to any certification schemes, we believe it should be offering more assistance and guidance in the selection of suitable and trustworthy cloud providers,” adds Hilton.
